Focus: The thin line between poor diet and child abuse

This child is just eight years old but weighs 14 stone. This week social workers must decide whether to remove him from home and place him in care

Though Connor McCreaddie is only an eight-year-old boy, his sheer size has turned him into a demolition man. At 14 stone, and with a boy's abandon, he has broken four beds, six lavatory seats and five bicycles. And he's still got a lot of growing to do.

His obesity and lack of fitness mean he has difficulty walking. Sometimes he cannot even manage the seven-minute stroll to school, leading to a poor attendance record and missed education.

Connor's diet, by his mother's admission, is appalling. Although he is cutting back on junk food, until recently he was eating four packets of crisps a day, and it was typical for him to consume four Yorkshire puddings with his evening meal and demand snacks every 20 minutes.

The stakes are high for his health and education; now they are about to get even higher for his family.